The Orville is Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane’s voyage into the sci-fi universe. When MacFarlane premiered his hilarious passion project in 2017, he had no idea what was waiting for him at the end of the second season. The show ran smoothly and began filming the third season in 2019 when everything shut down for the pandemic in March 2020. Since then, fans of this Star Trek-style comedy have been anxiously waiting for the third season due to the dramatic close the series had at the end of its second season. But now it looks like The Orville has finally returned with a third season.

The show suffered notable challenges while stuck in the limbo of lockdown. Along with the pandemic, some were worried that The Orville wouldn’t survive the Disney/Fox merger, but it appears that it has by moving from Fox to Hulu. And while the series was suspended, Seth MacFarlane was cultivating new opportunities, like his recent deal to create a TV show based on his movie Ted. But with the cast eventually put back together and ready to work, the show was off to the races.

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The new name, The Orville: New Horizons, comes from a combination of the title switching over to Hulu and the plot line that opened up at the end of season two when a separate timeline was created in The Orville’s universe.

The Orville: New Horizons: The Plot

Despite the difficulties the show encountered, the cast and crew did not fail at making a remarkable show. Based on the trailer and new footage for the third season, the show’s special effects budget has significantly increased, adding more action and space battles to the series. The stakes are high as the second season ended with a two-part finale in which an alternate timeline was created by Ed and Kelly going on their first date.

In that timeline, the aggressor race of the series, the Kaylons, destroyed Earth and conquered half the galaxy. The Orville was destroyed in an attempt to restore the original timeline, but the results of this terrifying gambit have yet to be revealed. While it’s apparent that everyone survived, and the ship, or at least a version of it, came out fine, we aren’t certain what changes remained in the universe.

Unfortunately, the future of The Orville beyond this season remains cloudy. Even if the series is well received on Hulu, the cast suffered the loss of one of its best members. MacFarlane as well is very busy with other projects. Occupied with producing and acting in the series Ted (which will premiere on NBCUniversal’s streaming service Peacock), the contracts associated with The Orville have already lapsed, which means in order to make the fourth season, the cast will have to be reassembled, and new deals will have to be drawn up. Though Scott Grimes will follow MacFarlane into his series Ted, we aren’t sure what’s happening with the rest of the cast.

The Orville: New Horizons: The Cast

     20th Century Studios

The series will return with all the original crew with Seth MacFarlane as Captain Ed Mercer, Adrianne Palicki as Mercer’s ex-wife Commander Kelly Grayson, Penny Johnson Jerald as Dr. Claire Finn, Scott Grimes as Lr. Gordon Malloy, Peter Macon as Lt. Cmdr. Bortus, J. Lee as Lt. Cmdr. John LaMarr, Mark Jackson as Isaac, Jessica Szohr as Lt. Talla Keyali, and Chad L. Coleman as Klyden. The new season will also feature a new cast member, Anne Winters, who will play Ensign Charly Burke.

The cast faced specific challenges during the pandemic. But Seth MacFarlane never stopped making it a priority. When fans asked whether the show would return, MacFarlane stated,

Unfortunately, this will be the last season for Norm MacDonald. The prolific comedian voiced gelatinous engineer Lt. Yaphit. Although he managed to finish his voiceover work for season three, he succumbed to leukemia in September 2021. He will be missed by the staff and all the fans of his hilarious comedy.

Release Date

The Orville: New Horizons will premiere on Hulu on June 2, 2022. Enjoy it, because if the fans make a big enough noise for more, studios will always deliver.